TwinDad

DD is applying Early Decision to Tisch (CAP21), and has her audition just before Thanksgiving. We just noticed that Tisch says monologues must (or should?) be from "published plays."

Working with her acting coach, DD picked two monologues from a monologue book. As far as we can find, neither play has a publisher - but at least one of them was produced in 2006, anyway, and even won some regional awards.

Does anybody know if this is going to be a problem for the audition panel? How strict are they about the "published" part? If I have to get DD to change her monologues, I need to do it fast!

Thanks in advance for any thoughts the collective brain trust here can provide.

TwinDad

bwaychic

This is somethign that I probably shouldn't say, and i wouldn't recommend being as stupid as i am, but here goes.

For my NYU cap 21 audition, RD, i had two monologues as everyone does. I realize when I'm filling out the form that I don't remember who wrote one of the plays... I never read it (mistake number one), and I guess just couldn't figure out who it was. Mistake number two... I made up the author. Just.. made it up. I was somewhat right, I believe I said Joanne Murry, and it was Joanna Murray Smith (who Ive come to find is a phenomenal playwrite that I should NOT have forgotten). Anywho, I still got in, so they can't be THAT strict about it. Maybe they knew I was an idiot and looked past it, but I'm pretty sure that the woman just didn't catch it because it was from an obscure play. I still got in, and thats my shpiel. I would recommend getting another monologue, but if it comes down to it, dont fret it because anything is possible. If they recognize your daughters talent, her pieces will just be icing on the cake.

TomBFACoach

Twin Dad... I am sure you and daughter's coach work well together, but this is a big blunder on the coaches part. That's why you pay a coach. To avoid these situations.
I would never even start working on a monologue with a student unless I knew what play it was from, and the author, and both I and the student had read it.

Bwaychic is correct..... her/his method should not be recommended! NYU often has ONE person watching your audition and asking questions. You might not have gotten away with it if there had been a panel.

To make up the authors name, and to not have read the play is outrageous.l
I am glad you got away with it and are enjoying NYU!

alwaysamom

Twindad, I agree with Tom here. This is a very big blunder on the part of this coach. In my opinion, this is a problem for two reasons. First, if the monologues are not from published plays, then your D has not followed the audition instructions. Second, if she has not read the plays from which her monologues were chosen, she's at a disadvantage because not only is it good preparation for becoming familiar with the character she'll be portraying, but the interview portion of the audition process often includes discussion of the plays. Unfortunately, this is a good example of why a monologue should not be chosen from a monologue book, without obtaining the play itself.

I honestly don't know what I would recommend at this point as your time line is short. Are those the only two monologues she has? Most kids, especially those who work with a coach, would usually have a couple of backups. Is it possible that her backup plays can be located quickly and read?

NotMamaRose

I am just shocked that any coach would make this mistake. That's why you pay a coach: he or she is supposed to know what he or she is doing. I would have asked for my money back. It would have been clear to me that that particular coach hasn't coached kids for auditions at any of the better-known schools.

NOLAMOM

My d was questioned in detail about one of her monologues. It was obscure and the auditioner had never heard it before. It was not from a published play, but a series of monologues/one acts performed on MTV(about true crime) and later published in a monologue book. The character was a real person (Amy Fisher) and my daughter did research her. The auditioner loved it.

I have to admit that due to stress ( family illness, school issues with audtions, etc.) my d was the least prepared for the NYU audition. The day she was leaving for her NYU audtion she realized that she had the wrong cut of music (number of bars?) prepared. She called and they told her that it was fine to come audtion anyway. On the way to the audition she realized that her monologue selection was wrong and that she did NOT have two contemporary monologues prepared, instead she had a contemporary and a classic monologue. Her contemporary monologue was questionable as it was from MTV. On top of all that she forgot her CD player for the recorded music. It was a nightmare. She went to the audition anyway and had a wonderful experience. She loved the auditioner and she loved the interview. She was accepted and is now a CAP21 student.

That said--Although everything turned out okay, it is best to be prepared with the right material! If you have time, get a new monologue and read the plays. NYU will have questions about the monologue/play and your d should be prepared for those questions. My d story is unusual and could have easily gone the other way. I wanted to share it for those kids who do make last minute mistakes. Last minute goof-ups do happen in this process and when they do----like bwaychic said, don't fret, anything is possible

TwinDad

Thanks to all who've replied. We will explore backups/alternatives (gently - this has not been a stress-free process), and plow ahead.

I'd love to hear more about people's audition experiences at Tisch, and CAP21 in particular. We'll start worrying about her other auditions after this one's over.